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Research dossier · General Reference

Neo Geo CD

home video game console

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 1, 2026
Entity authorityQ2703883 ↗
Source-derived summary

The Neo Geo CD (ネオジオCD, Neo Jio Shī Dī) also called as NeoCD is a home video game console produced by SNK Corporation, released on September 9, 1994. The system is the same platform as the cartridge-based Neo Geo released four years earlier, but converted to the cheaper CD media format which retailed at $49 to 79 per title compared to up to $300 for the equivalent cartridge.

The Neo Geo CD was launched with a bundled control pad instead of a joystick like the AES version of the Neo Geo came with; however, the system was compatible with controllers from the AES. The Neo Geo CD met with limited success due to it being plagued with long loading times that could vary from 30 to 60 seconds, depending on the game, and its lack of 3D graphics capabilities at a time when 3D graphics were becoming ubiquitous in the video game industry. As of September 30, 1997, there had been 570,000 Neo Geo CD units sold worldwide; production of all Neo Geo consoles were discontinued in 1997, while new software continued to be released and backported by the Neo Geo MVS until 2004.

History

The Neo Geo CD was first unveiled at the 1994 Tokyo Toy Show. The console uses the same CPU set-up as the arcade and cartridge-based Neo Geo systems, facilitating conversions. SNK planned to release Neo Geo CD versions of every Neo Geo game still in the arcades.

The system was originally priced at US$399.

In response to criticism of the Neo Geo CD's long load times, SNK planned to produce a model with a double-speed CD-ROM drive for North America, compared to the single-speed drive of the Japanese and European models. However, the system missed its planned North American launch date of October 1995, and while SNK declined to give a specific reason for the delay, in their announcement of the new January 1996 launch date they stated that they had decided against using a double-speed drive.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Neo Geo CD” is home video game console. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through home, video and game, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA dependable orientation record for establishing vocabulary, names and a first evidence trail. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1994, 1997, 2004, 1995—that can be checked directly. The authority record carries competing date values—1994-09-09, 1994-12-01, 1996-01-01—which should remain separate until their references and qualifiers are resolved. For this dossier, home, video and game is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “home video game console” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 1, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2703883. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 3 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1994, 1997, 2004 and 1995.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Neo Geo CD”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Neo Geo CD primary sources, Neo Geo CD archive and home research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Neo Geo CD”?
  2. Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
  3. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Neo Geo CD” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.